An employee walking along a thermal pipe at the Kamojang geothermalpower plant near Garut, West Java, on March 18. State utility provider Perusahaan Listrik Negara is targeting an additional 135 megawatts ofelectricity from three new geothermal plants. (Reuters Photo/Beawiharta)

So let me tell you what else they did. They just showed you what's wrong with nuclear power. "Safe to the maximum," they said. "Our devices are strong and cannot fail." But they did. They are no match for Gaia.

It seems that for more than 20 years, every single time we sit in the chair and speak of electric power, we tell you that hundreds of thousands of tons of push/pull energy on a regular schedule is available to you. It is moon-driven, forever. It can make all of the electricity for all of the cities on your planet, no matter how much you use. There's no environmental impact at all. Use the power of the tides, the oceans, the waves in clever ways. Use them in a bigger way than any designer has ever put together yet, to power your cities. The largest cities on your planet are on the coasts, and that's where the power source is. Hydro is the answer. It's not dangerous. You've ignored it because it seems harder to engineer and it's not in a controlled environment. Yet, you've chosen to build one of the most complex and dangerous steam engines on Earth - nuclear power.

We also have indicated that all you have to do is dig down deep enough and the planet will give you heat. It's right below the surface, not too far away all the time. You'll have a Gaia steam engine that way, too. There's no danger at all and you don't have to dig that far. All you have to do is heat fluid, and there are some fluids that boil far faster than water. So we say it again and again. Maybe this will show you what's wrong with what you've been doing, and this will turn the attitudes of your science to create something so beautiful and so powerful for your grandchildren. Why do you think you were given the moon? Now you know.

This benevolent Universe gave you an astral body that allows the waters in your ocean to push and pull and push on the most regular schedule of anything you know of. Yet there you sit enjoying just looking at it instead of using it. It could be enormous, free energy forever, ready to be converted when you design the methods of capturing it. It's time. …”

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Indonesia Works To Secure Lead in "Ring of Fire" Geothermal Market

Jakarta,
Indonesia -- Indonesia is aggressively moving to build up its geothermal
industry with plans add as much as 9,000 MW of installed capacity by 2025.
However, industry observers say the Southeast Asian country's government must
do more to attract foreign investment if it wants to achieve that target.

"The
tenders are out there, they just need the investors to come in," says Paul
Brophy, president and chief executive of geothermal consultancy GES, which is
working with the Indonesian government to help boost foreign investment and
develop the geothermal industry. "So far, some 20 to 30 concessions have
been issued so there is still lots of room for new companies to come in and
develop the resources."

Industry
observers say Indonesia, with the world's highest number of active volcanoes,
has the greatest geothermal potential in the so-called Ring of Fire volcanic
region straddling the country as well as New Zealand, Philippines, Japan and
the Eastern part of Russia. Of all those countries, Indonesia, Philippines and
Japan have the strongest development potential, observers say.

However,
Indonesia has more volcanic "hot spots" (some 265) and a more
aggressive development scheme than the other countries. Developers are using
these hot spots to drill holes that can produce steam from volcanic energy. So
far, Chevron is the leading foreign developer in the sector but others
including Indian industrial conglomerate Tata, Shell, Canada's Raser
Technologies and Australia's Origin Energy are also looking to set up
geothermal plants.

Investment
Challenge

Brophy said
the biggest stumbling block in the way to Indonesia's development dream is a
dearth of foreign investment as the government does not want to finance the
9,000-MW build-up, estimated to cost $30 billion, on its own.

To do this,
the government recently issued a law that would allow foreign developers to
pursue their own projects as long as an Indonesian player receives a five
percent stake in them. To meet this requirement, international developers must
set up consortiums that include at least one Indonesian company, Brophy explained,
adding that he thinks that the law will boost investment. This is because
before, foreign companies were mostly restricted to partner with state energy
group Pertamina if they wanted to build a geothermal project in Indonesia.

"They
don't need to partner with Peternina anymore. They can go on their own as long
as an Indonesian player has at least five percent equity in the project,"
adds one industry observer.

Jennifer
Derstine, a renewable energy analyst at the U.S. Department of Commerce's international
trade mission, agrees that the government is working to attract more
international players. She adds that when the department of commerce launched a
geothermal trade mission two years ago, the investment framework banned foreign
companies from pursuing small geothermal projects on their own. However, that
is now allowed and is expected to bolster interest from U.S. and other foreign
companies to roll out projects.

"The
law had reserved smaller-size development permits of geothermal plants under 10
MW for Indonesian companies. Now, the market is open to U.S. geothermal
developers and investors," says Derstine.

"Uncompetitive"
Tariffs

However,
echoing other views, she says tariffs are still too low to make geothermal
projects competitive. Brophy says
Jakarta is also working to address this issue. State electricity company PLN
recently established a U.S. $0.097 feed-in tariff per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for
geothermal plants, but the region is wiling to negotiate a higher price for
projects located far from the power grid. However, some investors are concerned
about whether debt-ridden PLN will ultimately be able to pay those prices as
state coffers are already burdened with high subsidies for the energy sector,
observers say.

Because
building geothermal plants is expensive, with the ultimate capacity that can be
extracted from them, uncertain, developers are looking for the highest possible
tariffs and assurances that the projects will be profitable before jumping into
the market. Brophy adds that the government is aware that tariffs must be more
competitive and that it is likely to shift some traditional power subsidies
into renewable energy to develop the geothermal space as well as other green
technologies.

The
Indonesian tariff is lower than in the U.S. where developers are paid $0.10 to
$0.12 per kWh. Development costs are much lower in Indonesia, however, Brophy
says.

If all goes
well — and barring a prolonged and deeper global recession — Brophy hopes
Indonesia will be able to attract enough foreign money to meet its 2025
geothermal targets, which could ultimately make the country the world's biggest
producer of geothermal power. But it will need to watch over rivals like the
Philippines and Japan. The former is looking to install 3,000 MW by 2020, up
from 1.95 MW now. And as it moves to diversify its energy matrix following its
recent nuclear disaster, Japan could also draft ambitious plans to develop its
"vast" geothermal resources, Derstine adds.

For now, eyes are on Indonesia as a potential leader in geothermal energy as long as it can get the funds it needs to meet its ambitious development targets.

Health, Safety & Environment

PRECARIOUS: Without proper safety equipment, three workers put the iron frame for a billboard in place near the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta on Friday. The billboard will display a sign celebrating the city's 480th birthday. JP/Arief Suhardiman

Suppliers

Water Distribution

Flow of Funds, Flow of Water (WB)

Today, fewer than 20% of households in Indonesia have access to piped water, which is inexpensive and still of reasonable quality compared to alternative sources. The situation has deteriorated in recent years, as the sector can no longer rely on central government grants and loans, formerly major sources of funding.Read More ...

FREE CAR WASH: A taxi is sprayed with water from a broken pipe on Jl. HR Rasuna Said in South Jakarta on Sunday. (JP/J. Adiguna)

GIFT FROM EARTH: Almost half of Jakarta's residents use groundwater as their main source of clean water due to a lack of access to treated piped water. Water comes from wells like the one this family in Kampung Bahari, North Jakarta are using (photo above), or mechanic pumps like this one in Kampung Melayu, South Jakarta. (JP/P.J. Leo)

LATEST NEWS: Photographers covering the deteriorating health of former president Soeharto send pictures through a wireless internet facility in front of Pertamina Hospital in South Jakarta on Wednesday. The service, which was provided by IT company CISCO, has saved journalists the effort of going back and forth between their offices to submit their work. JP/R. Berto Wedhatama